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Following is the question by the Hon Fred Li and a written reply by the Secretary for Economic Development and Labour, Mr Stephen Ip, in the Legislative Council today (January 18):
It has been reported that, when attending a radio programme early last month, the Secretary for Economic Development and Labour did not deny that the Government was discussing with the relevant parties the construction of a new theme park in Hong Kong. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the details of the discussions, including the commencement date of the discussions and the government departments involved;
(b) of the preliminary proposal on the new theme park, including the locations as well as the modes of construction and operation that have been considered or are being considered, and whether the Government plans to inject funds into the project; and
(c) given that the Ocean Park will carry out a $5.5 billion redevelopment project and Hong Kong Disneyland also plans to develop more amusement facilities, whether it has studied the viability of the new theme park; if so, of the findings of the study; if not, the reasons for that?
Reply:
Madam President,
To maintain and enhance Hong Kong's attractiveness to tourists, the Government will continue to develop new tourist attractions. We will not rule out the possibility of developing a third theme park at an appropriate time in the future. However, at the moment we do not have any concrete plan and we are not engaged in any discussion with any parties on the construction of a new theme park.
At present, our priority is to ensure the smooth operation of the Hong Kong Disneyland and the enhancement of its facilities as well as the implementation of the Ocean Park Redevelopment Project.
Ends/Wednesday, January 18, 2006
Issued at HKT 15:00
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